Event Horizon
by nytecat
Summary: The crew of the Normandy accidentally crosses dimensions and encounters the crew of the Ebon Hawk. Shepard Paragon/Earthborn/Ruthless. Revan LSF. Rated M for coarse language.
1. Chapter 1

**Event Horizon**

_Author's Note: An idea that struck me during my lunch break and I decided to write it for fun. It's a crossover with characters from Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect. It takes place after the events in Mass Effect 2 and a few months after KoTOR 1 before the crew from both games went their separate ways. _

_This story does not link with any of my other Mass Effect fanfics except the characterizations of the cast remains the same. I have never written a KoTOR fanfic that I felt fully captured the characters – which explains why I have no KoTOR fanfics posted on ffnet. Anyway, so here is my stab at it._

**Chapter 1 – LOST**

A strange cluster of stars surrounded them.

The commander leaned on the back of the helmsman's chair. He heard her sharp intake of breath as she scanned the stars and nebulas through the view port, searching for familiar constellations. Again and again her gaze raked the vast void.

She spoke then. Her tone was carefully devoid of any emotion. "Joker, where are we?" To the helmsman's ears, he heard: "Joker, have you screwed up again?"

The helmsman shrugged off that dolorous thought. "I have no idea, Commander. Although I do know one thing for sure - we're not in Kansas anymore," Joker replied.

Shepard glanced at him askance. Her violet-blue eyes told him that she was in no mood for his jokes. He hurriedly said, "EDI can't get a fix on our location. None of the clusters match those in our star maps." The pilot paused then added, "And we got a lot of star maps."

"EDI, scan the system. I want intel in case we need to mine for resources."

The AI acknowledged the commander's order. Shepard then leaned forward and opened a com channel. It chimed its readiness. "Tali, how are things in engineering?" she asked.

It took a moment for the quarian to reply. She was probably screening diagnostics. "The FTL drives suffered catastrophic failure when we jumped through the Omega mass relay, Commander. I have run through the ship's scans and it seemed that the Normandy fell into a wormhole when we came out of the jump."

"We got sucked through a wormhole?" Joker repeated incredulously. "Do you know how impossible that sounds?"

The quarian's response was terse. "Believe me, Joker, I wish that I was kidding." She paused then said, "And it gets better. The wormhole we travelled through seems to have disappeared. Closed."

Shepard straightened up from the console and scrubbed both hands through her short cropped red hair, eyes closed. She seemed to be thinking. Then she opened her eyes.

She said after a moment. "So, we're stuck in space with no way of returning back to where we came from. Is that the situation?"

Tali was silent. Then she answered the commander. "Yes." That single word was heavy and ominous.

Shepard traded sombre glances with Joker. "How are the FTL drives now, Tali?"

"That's the odd thing, Commander. I ran a complete diagnostic on them, they're fine. I can't find a reason for the failure," Tali replied, frustration making her pitch higher than normal.

The commander shook her head. "Any ideas on what we should do next?"

A voice spoke up behind them with a trace of an Australian accent.

"It would be better if we sit tight here until we have a plan. Our fuel is not infinite and who knows where we might find a depot to refuel."

They turned to see Miranda, dressed in her customary white skintight outfit. She looked as calm and collected as usual except for her mussed brunette locks. The ex-Cerberus operative had obviously been asleep during the jump and had hurriedly dressed.

"That seems like as good as an idea as any for the time being," Shepard concurred. She was about to continue when the klaxons sounded.

Five red windows blinked open at Joker's terminal. He hurriedly screened the data, magnifying portions for easier readability. "This is not good. This is not good," he muttered to himself. "Oh crap!"

"Commander, a ship has just dropped out of FTL," EDI informed Shepard.

Shepard cursed vehemently under her breath. Aloud, she ordered: "Get ready to blast that starship into space dust."

Joker nodded and typed in the commands. "Weapons are online, Commander."

The commander nodded once in acknowledgement. She examined the silhouette of the ship on the HUD. "EDI, what is that?"

"It does not match any of the IFF signatures in our database, Commander."

Shepard frowned. She did not like the sound of that – and nor did Miranda.

"We destroyed the Collector Base. What could it be?" the XO murmured. "A new agent of the Reapers?" Her voice was nearly lost in the blare of the alarms.

Jacob entered the cockpit just in time to catch what Miranda had said. The ex-Alliance soldier said, "Knowing our luck, it is. I'm in favour of shooting first and asking questions later."

"Don't tempt her, Jacob," Miranda admonished the man.

The commander ignored their byplay. She was strongly tempted to follow Jacob's suggestion. She would not let the Normandy be destroyed again. "Hail them," she ordered.

There was silence. After several moments, the AI said "They are not responding to our hails, Commander."

"EDI, do you know the system well enough to make a jump?" Shepard asked quietly.

Miranda and Jacob exchanged alarmed glances. "No, Commander, I am sorry but I do not," the AI replied.

Before Shepard could reply, Joker interrupted her.

"Shepard! They are coming around for an attack!"


	2. Chapter 2

Event Horizon

**Chapter 2 – FIRESTORM**

The Ebon Hawk blazed across the stars, corkscrewing around a volley of molten metal. Carth was exerting every bit of his piloting skill in keeping them alive for a mere moment longer. Even that would not have been enough if it weren't for Revan.

Revan, seating next to him in the copilot seat, was using her Force powers. Her black brows were knitted together as she focused her mind. Her pale blue eyes were round sapphires. "Wait, wait, wait. Now!"

On her mark, Carth swerved the ship around, narrowly curving around another blast. The man had an intense look of concentration on his face as he navigated the ship from certain destruction.

"I sense great apprehension and fear from the crew within that ship," Bastila murmured suddenly from behind them. She was seated in one of the passenger seats. "But not anger nor malice."

"Are you sure it's coming from the ship or from me?" Jolee muttered under his breath next to the younger Jedi knight. The cankerous man had a dark scowl on his craggy face which he directed at the view port. If looks could kill, the enemy vessel would have been space dust by now. The old man was probably wishing right then that he had stayed a hermit.

From his navigator station, Canderous too wore a dark scowl. The old Mandalorian was studying a holographic display of the enemy vessel. Despite his scowl, the man had a rare look of respect on his face.

"I don't care about feelings. All I know is that it's a damn big ship and one hit from whatever its cannons are firing would be the end of the Ebon Hawk," he said. His voice – like the rest of him – seemed hewn from stone, rough and hard.

Revan had a thoughtful look on her face at that but she did not voice what was on her mind. Her frown of concentration deepened. "Dodge right then dive."

Carth complied.

"I can't shake them," the pilot gritted through his teeth. "And I can't keep dodging them forever. What's the plan, Revan?"

The Jedi knight did not answer. Perhaps she was still forming a plan. The Ebon Hawk continued its evasive maneuvers, weaving like a comet between blasts from the enemy vessel.

Suddenly, Carth raised his head from the console. He looked surprise. "It stopped firing," he said in wonder.

"Then what are you waiting for?" Canderous barked.

The pilot began spooling up the FTL drives, ready to make a hyperspace jump. "Let's get out of here."

"Stop."

That single word cut through the air.

Carth paused in his calibrations. "Revan, we're up against an unknown force," he began but the former Sith Lord cut him off.

"We're not leaving until we find out who they are and where they came from. For all we know, that could be the remnants of the Sith or worse, a new weapon," she replied. She cast Jolee a wry look and added, "And no, I am not 'out of my mind'."

The old Jedi Master snorted good-naturedly. "I wasn't going to say that. Although the words 'brave' and 'foolish' did cross my mind," he said.

"Are we dead yet?" a youthful and brash voice asked then.

As one, they turned to see Mission enter the cockpit accompanied by Zaalbar. The young Twi'lek wore a cocky grin and if you could read the Wookie's expression, Zaalbar wore an exasperated one.

A beep from the console diverted Carth's attention back to the ship's computer. He inquired and bit back a curse.

The pilot shook his head at Revan's inquiring look. "A shuttle just departed from the unknown ship. It's heading right for us," he informed her.

"Do they propose to storm the ship?" Bastila asked no one in particular. Her cultivated tones sounded incredulous at the very the thought.

Revan gave Mission a reassuring look, who appeared startled. She could feel the Twi'lek's fear threading through the young teenager.

"Prepare to be boarded and rouse HK-47 and Juhani," she ordered.

Her crew moved with alacrity to obey. Bastila, however, lingered for a moment in the cockpit.

"Something feels wrong about that ship," the young Jedi knight told her.

Revan nodded. "I know," she said quietly.


	3. Chapter 3

Event Horizon

**Chapter 3 – ****FIRST CONTACT**

Shepard glowered at the empty place in the hangar. She then directed that murderous look at her companion. Garrus squatted down easily as he examined his sniper rifle, ignoring the commander and her foul mood. He ran a finger along the barrel, noting the scratches marring the metal.

"Any word from the shore party?"

He puffed out his cheeks, letting out his breath slowly in a long sigh. His mandibles clicked twice in irritation but he bottled up the emotion before the human could read it on his face.

"Nope," the turian replied coolly despite it being the fourth time that the commander had asked that question within the hour. "We haven't heard anything from them since they docked with the foreign ship."

The human began to pace. Not in worry but in frustration. Garrus knew Shepard; she was probably burning up with the need to do something - anything. It was not in her nature to stand still and wait, unless she was waiting in ambush. Then she could be as patient and still as a stone.

Garrus looked at his friend. For a human woman, she was tall and lithely muscled with long limbs and a very supportive waist. She had a habit of brushing the short red hair out of her eyes and curling it behind an ear when she was agitated. He had heard the human crew comment that she was an attractive specimen of her species.

Underneath that prettiness and calm exterior was a raw violence waiting to be unleashed. Even dressed in her combat utility uniform, she gave off an aura of menace.

The turian figured that he better say something and take Shepard's mind off from the mission before she exploded. "Well, Miranda, did have a point. We cannot risk you," he said blithely then clacked his mouth shut.

'Crap! Not the topic to take the commander's mind off the mission, you idiot' Garrus cursed at himself mentally.

Shepard stopped pacing and knelt down on one knee next to Garrus. "Humanity's and the universe's best hope against the Reapers, huh?" she muttered under her breath. She unholstered her sidearm and idly checked its thermal clip.

The turian looked at his friend in concern. Shepard had sounded weary. He had heard that weariness in long-serving turian officers. His mandibles clacked delicately as he forced a smile onto his face. "A bit melodramatic but it did drive the point home through your stubborn skull."

"Well, you and the others backed her up," Shepard replied. Did Garrus detect a slight hint of petulance in her tone? No, this was Shepard. The commander was never petulant. She returned her sidearm to its holster at her side. "I was outnumbered and outflanked," the commander added in a dramatic aggrieved tone – spoiling the effect with a small wry smile.

Garrus sighed softly. If Shepard could still joke despite that aged battle-weary look in her eyes, she was not yet over the edge.

"Don't worry about Miranda. She has Grunt, Jacob, Zaeed and Thane with her," he reminded the commander. He eyed her as a shadow of worry darkened her demeanor. "That's a hell lot more people than you bring along when you leave the ship," he quipped.

Shepard merely grunted dourly in reply, though her wry smile twisted into an amused grin.

The turian resisted the urge to punch the commander in the shoulder. He stood instead and the commander followed suit.

"Maybe it's better this time for Miranda to lead. A more diplomatic approach might be needed instead of your usual 'We come in peace (shoot to kill)' attitude," he said then as he holstered his rifle to his armour.

The commander chuckled softly at his comment. "I notice that you left out the part where the people we encounter often are the ones trying to kill me first," the human murmured dryly.

Despite her dry tone, there was a fire blazing in her eyes. It seemed that the commander did not like his insinuation. It probably reminded her of her reputation as a ruthless officer.

The turian studied her for a moment. He had screwed up somehow in this exchange and cursed himself. He was supposed to be cheering her up, not kicking Shepard while she was down. That is not how you repay a friend who risked her life and went into hell to pull you out of it.

At that time, the turian had given himself up for dead. He knew that he could the outlast all the waves of mercs that the crimelords of Omega would throw at him. He knew that – so he was determined to sell his life to the highest bidder. It was the price he had to pay for getting his men killed.

Then, Shepard showed up.

Garrus could still remember the explosive sense of relief and disbelief in his chest when he saw Shepard in his crosshairs on Omega. And the bolt of fear that coursed through him when he saw that she had him in her crosshairs.

A laugh rumbled deep in his chest. "You know, you're attractive - for a human - when you're mad."

Shepard gaped at him, a rare stunned look on her face. Then she laughed; a deep throated laugh. The human quickly recovered herself and flashed her friend a mock scowl. "Damn it, don't make me laugh when I'm mad at you," she replied in a haughty tone.

Then as suddenly as her good mood materialized, it vanished like a sun hidden by a herd of clouds. The human's eyes turned sombre and thoughtful.

"It's quiet. Too quiet," she said then. "I don't like it."

Garrus thought about consoling her with some vague reassurance but he knew that the commander would resent that. Also, Shepard was right - the whole situation reeked. "Yeah," the turian agreed softly.

Shepard cast the empty bay a long pensive look. Then she sighed, crossing her arms. The human turned and walked towards the elevator. Garrus caught up easily with his long loping strides and fell in step beside her.

They had just reached the elevator when Joker intercommed her.

"Commander, shuttle is enroute. It will be docking in a few minutes," the pilot reported.

The commander had her hand raised to call the elevator. She lowered that hand and beckoned for Garrus to follow her back to stand before the empty bay. The turian did wordlessly as he unholstered his rifle. For some reason, a growing sense of apprehension welled suddenly within him.

Shepard was silent as they waited. She thoughtfully thumbed the butt of her heavy pistol as she adopted a casual hip out stance.

The wait was longer than a few minutes. Finally, the hangar bay doors opened and the shuttle passed through the Normandy's shield barriers. The shuttle turned and alighted - no, dropped onto its bay.

"Is it just me or is Jacob being a bit heavy-handed in how he pilots the shuttle?" Garrus asked the commander. She frowned slightly but did not reply.

Electronic whirling filled the quiet hangar as the doors to the shuttle opened and folded back.

Garrus could feel the commander beginning to tense up beside him. She stopped thumbing her pistol and instead rested her hand lightly on top of it. The feeling of apprehension spiked in him until his skin crawled with it.

Shepard glanced at her friend, words unspoken passed between them. Be ready, her eyes told him. The turian nodded and drew his sniper rifle casually. He held it with its muzzle pointed to the ground, angled towards the shuttle.

A pair of boot-falls sounded.

Then a strange woman appeared in the shuttle's doorway. She was a human with cold blue eyes and dark chestnut hair done in two ponytails.

Her outfit was unlike any Alliance or colony style clothing – a tan body suit, overlaid with a dark brown robe, cinched at the waist by a utility belt. Her form-fitting leggings were tucked into sturdy medium brown knee high boots. She was adorned with almost no armour save for small half-moon pauldrons and leather gauntlets – both in identical shades of oak brown.

In the woman's right hand, she carried a metal tube which she grasped about a quarter up from its end. Could it be a weapon of some sort? Shepard wondered.

"Okay, that's definitely not Miranda," Garrus said in a low voice.


	4. Chapter 4

**Event Horizon**

**Chapter 4 - DIALOGUE**

The stranger was staring at them with cool – almost arrogant – confidence. She spoke then in a foreign language but not to them, to someone inside the shuttle.

Garrus tapped his ear then glanced out of the corner of his eye at Shepard. The commander caught his frown and she shook her head slightly, careful not to take her gaze off the stranger. So, whatever language the stranger was speaking, Shepard could not understand it.

The commander had heard many languages in her life, especially growing up on the dirty streets of Earth. It was a simple matter of survival there to understand what people were saying around you. She had a good grasp on a handful of human and alien languages – turian and a smidgen of asari – but she had never heard the language which the strange human was speaking.

When the stranger stopped speaking, a tall and powerfully built human man in his late forties appeared in the shuttle doorway, carrying some sort of hand cannon and dragging a familiar woman by the arm with him.

It was Miranda.

The ex-Cerberus operative did not look wounded although her tight suit was torn and scorched in several places. She had her wrists tied together by some kind of energy handcuffs.

"Crap," Garrus growled in a whisper. "Hostages. The situation just got nasty, Commander."

"Hostage," Shepard corrected. "We don't know what happened to the rest of the squad." She frowned then added. "Let's try to keep the situation from turning into a messy bloodbath. Call it in, Garrus."

The turian obeyed, rattling a string of military code to Joker. Joker acknowledged the orders and told them that security would be there in a few.

While Garrus was relaying her orders, the commander called out to the strange woman and man: "Release your hostage. Put down your weapons and step away from the shuttle with your hands in the air." She drew out her heavy pistol and aimed it at them.

"Do it! Nice and easy, now!" she yelled when the strangers did not make a move. Her finger eased onto the trigger. Beside her, Garrus raised his rifle and sighted along the barrel. With luck, the strangers would be dead before they knew it.

"Commander, stop!"

Miranda staggered forward but was restrained by the man, who seemed to be a soldier from his manner of dress. She cast him a furious glance then continued on with her warning. "They're powerful biotics - stronger than Samara and Jacob combined."

That nugget of information caused Shepard to pause. She noted that Garrus moved to the side slowly for a clean kill shot on the man holding Miranda. The turian's eyes slid over to Shepard for a fraction of a second. She nodded her permission but made a furtive gesture for him to wait.

"Miranda, where are the others?" Shepard questioned the ex-Cerberus operative.

Miranda tried to pull away from the man restraining her. He tugged her arm roughly. She glared at him. "They're alive and on their ship," she replied.

Before Miranda could answer any further, the strangers were soon joined by another human woman and another man. The man looked to be another soldier.

Miranda indicated the woman who was dressed in tan robes. "This is their leader, called Revan," she said then.

Revan spoke to Miranda and the ex-Cerberus operative answered tersely. Shepard frowned during their exchange. "How can you understand them?" she asked when it was over.

Miranda sighed. "Their leader did something to me with her biotic power. She…imprinted my mind with knowledge of their language." Despite her angry tone there was a trace of awe in the woman's voice.

The leader of the strangers then looked at Shepard. Revan hopped off the shuttle and strode towards the Alliance commander. Without any visible concern, Shepard cautiously backpedaled a few steps and changed her target from the man holding Miranda to Revan.

Revan spoke again. It sounded like a command.

"She said," Miranda translated with a trace of irony. "Take me to your leader. I assume that Revan wants to do the same thing she did to me to you."

Shepard caught Garrus' warning look. It might be to their strategic disadvantage if they revealed Shepard as the leader. Although looking into Revan's eyes, the commander had the feeling that she knew who the leader was.

The commander considered her options. She could turn the situation in a messy gunfight or she could try to resolve the situation peacefully. It might be advantageous if they could communicate with each other.

"Fine then," Shepard said then, exhaling slowly and steadying herself. She lowered her weapon and holstered it. She nodded at Revan who gave a cautious nod back. "Let's do it. Can't be worse than what the Prothean beacon did to me or an asari mind meld."

Revan approached her warily. She raised a hand and gently laid it on the commander's forehead. Shepard's skin tingled slightly at the contact. It felt like an ice cube was pressed against her skin. Her brain began to go numb.

This was not so bad, Shepard thought to herself.

And then her brain exploded with pain.

Shepard screamed. Her agonized cry resounded in the hangar bay. It felt like a thousand red-hot needles pierced her brain simultaneously. Then the pain got worse. Her brain felt like it was being chewed by some savage beast. Words – thousands upon thousands of alien words – sliced her mind.

The world turned red then black.

* * *

Revan caught the strange woman as she crumpled and laid her gently to the floor. The one caught Miranda uttered a cry and broke free from Canderous. She leapt off the shuttle and ran to her leader's side. She turned her over and seemed to be relieved that her leader still breathed though her breaths were rapid and shallow as if she had fever.

The alien that had been standing there was yelling something at Miranda. Miranda yelled back. It was clear that they were speaking two different languages but were able to perfectly understand each other. How remarkable.

It was an alien that Revan had never seen before. It was bipedal, reptilian and aggressive. It handled the weapon in its hands as if it was a part of it like an arm. It seemed to be male. The cacophony of emotions emanating from it hit Revan like a wave. One emotion was stronger above anything else.

Miranda had managed to calm the alien down. It was still hostile but at least it would bide its time before shooting them all. Not that Revan was worried about that. Bastila and herself could deflect any shot it took and there were Carth and Canderous who had orders to shoot to kill if the strangers tried anything.

Bastila joined Revan. The younger Jedi knight idly twirled her lightsaber in her hand as she looked down at Miranda and the strange woman.

"So, that's their leader," she commented softly.

* * *

"Shepard. Shepard. Shepard!"

It sounded like a voice down a distant tunnel. The voice kept calling her name. Shepard was surprised to find herself still alive. She stirred then opened her eyes. Then wished she had not. Light stabbed her eyes mercilessly.

When the pain had passed and she could see, Shepard found herself lying on the floor with her head cradled in Miranda's lap. Surrounding them in a circle was the Normandy crew and alien contingent – armed to the teeth – as well as the strangers from the ship.

Doctor Chakwas quickly knelt by her side and scanned the commander. When she found no grievous damage, she nodded to the Normandy crew. A collective sigh seemed to run through them.

It took Shepard a moment to realize that Miranda was speaking to her. At first her XO's words were discordant but became clearer with each passing syllable. "You should be able to understand what the one called Revan is saying," Miranda told her.

Shepard nodded in acknowledgment and sat up, fighting against sudden nausea. She got to her feet and turned to the one called Revan. Her mind groped for words in the alien language. It was like she was slowly reading them off a page.

"Release her as a show of good faith," Shepard said in Basic. Her voice was cordial but her eyes made it into an order.

The brunette next to Revan bristled at the Commander's tone. "You are in no position to make demands," she started to say but Revan laid a hand on her shoulder. She stopped although it was clear that it required a great effort for her to do so.

Revan studied Shepard for a long moment then nodded her assent. The man that had held Miranda captive merely grunted and complied. Miranda rubbed her wrists, trying to ease the sensation of needles as her blood circulation resumed.

Shepard nodded. "Thank you," she said civilly. "I believe what we had here was a failure to communicate."

Revan's lips curved in a near smile. "It would seem so. I assure you that we intend you no harm," she answered. She had a cool, unhurried way of speaking.

For the moment, Shepard believed her but remained vigilante. Her crew was still aboard the strangers' ship. "Release my crew and I will believe you," Shepard said.

"Quite a demand from the person who tried to raid my ship," Revan mused out loud. "In this situation, we were both right and we were both wrong," she went on.

Shepard frowned. She could feel the censure from the woman. She too was regretting her hasty decision to confront an unknown quantity. A bad command choice on her part in the heat of the moment.

"Who are you? Where are we – in dark space?" Shepard asked then.

Given the volatile nature of the woman's emotions, Revan decided to put her at ease. "We are not what you think we are," she assured her.

The leader of the strangers absorbed that with narrowed eyes. Revan could see the fierce cunning that burned within her. Her voice was casual but cautious.

"That depends. Are you my enemy?" Shepard then asked.

Revan answered with the same caution. "That depends. Are you Sith?" she countered. She felt like they were in a duel except using words instead of lightsabers.

"What are... never mind." Shepard began to ask but then stopped. Her frown deepened. "Even if I asked you if you are working with the Reapers or Cerberus, you could lie to me and I wouldn't even know it," she muttered, not aware of how keen Revan's hearing was.

Revan thought about it. It was clear that the Force and its ways were foreign to them. She said then. "But I would know it if you lie to me," Revan told her.

"How?"

"I can sense it through your emotions."

Shepard gaped for a moment, open-mouthed. Then she chuckled. The chuckle turned into a laugh. "That is just creepy," she wheezed. The laughter stopped suddenly. "Are you human?"

Revan's eyes narrowed. Was the woman deliberately insulting her? She answered in a challenging tone. "Yes. Are you?"

"Mostly," Shepard replied with a grin.


End file.
